Ministry of Tourism in partnership with the United Environment Program (UNEP) and Responsible Tourism Society of India (RTSOI) recently organized a national summit on developing sustainable and responsible tourist destinations on Saturday in New Delhi.
On the said occasion, the ministry also launched a national strategy for sustainable tourism and a responsible traveller campaign said a statement from the department.
This strategy has identified the strategic pillars for the development of sustainable tourism like promotion of environmental sustainability, protecting of biodiversity, promoting economic sustainability, promoting socio-cultural sustainability, scheme for certification of sustainable tourism, IEC, and capacity building and governance.
“Their interaction with each other is a two-way process. On the one hand, environmental resources constitute one of the basic ingredients of tourism,” said Secretary Tourism Arvind Singh speaking about the event and the campaign.
The secretary also said that the tourism and environment share a special relationship where the close and direct relationship between visitors, host communities and the local environment creates a sensitive situation whereby tourism can be both very damaging and also very positive for sustainable development.
With the covid19 pandemic, the tourism sector had to shift its focus on the resiliency, sustainability and interconnections said the ministry.
Mr Singh further said, “We need to make use of cleaner fuels. Prime Minister has also announced that India will increase its capacity of non-fossil energy capacity to 500 GW and meet 50 per cent of its energy requirements through renewable energy by 2030.”
“State tourism policies should recognize sustainability principles and the Sustainable Development Goals in their vision and strategic direction for tourism. With the vision to create a sustainable future for tourism, the Ministry of Tourism has also taken various steps in this direction,” he added.
